Terah begat Abraham, Nahor, Haron; and Haran begat Lot… The account details the life of Abraham, his leaving Ur of the Chaldees, the birth of Ishmael and Isaac, the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah, and the death of Abraham’s wife Sarah. Isaac describes how Rebekah was found for his wife. It gives some descendants of Ishmael and mentions his death. Then Ishmael’s personal record -- the generations of Ishmael -- is included beginning with his own colophon. Isaac ends the full account with the words. And these are the generations of Isaac, Abraham’s son.
The Hebrew is back-to-front, which cannot be helped as the program reverses the letters. Read from left to right instead of from right to left.
Adam.............................................................................930
Seth ..........................................................................912
Enos ...................................................................905
Cainan ...............................................................910
Mahaleel .............................................................895
Jared........................................................................962
Enoch ..................300
Methuselah ................................................................969
Lamech ..........................................................777
Noah ...............................................950.....
Shem ....600....
Year 1656
The next life experience in Genesis is that of Joseph, nearly ten chapters. Joseph’s story was probably written by his brother Levi while the family lived in Egypt. The Bible record does not connect with the last one, but begins immediately with Joseph, as it is a firsthand account.
You will remember that Joseph was sold into slavery, but in time rose to second in command under Pharoah, being appointed to prepare for the expected seven-year famine.
Some years later his brothers travelled to Egypt to buy food, and eventually the family, including the aged Jacob, moved there at Joseph’s request. Having eleven brothers and many nephews and nieces, his story would have been repeated many times and eventually recorded for posterity.
Levi was the last of the brothers to die, so it would have been his responsibility to pass the ancient records on to his son Kohath, who would pass them to his son Amran, the father of Moses.
It was Moses who copied the ancient tablets on a scroll and called them by the name of its first words b’rasheet -- in the beginning, or as we have it today, GENESIS.
Bible scholars have studied the book of Genesis for over three thousand years, and they can see clearly that Moses had such respect for the ancient writings that he transcribed them as written.
Linguists have said that each ancient record used local descriptions as the writer saw them, which in Moses’ day would often have been out of date. Moses recorded them in the book of Genesis as he found them.
For instance, in the list of nations, Genesis 10:19 speaks of Sodom, Gomorrah, Admah and Zeboim as the eastern boundary of the Canaanites, but by the time of Moses these cities had been destroyed.
Later, when Moses writes of the same boundary in the book of Deuteronomy, he does not mention the cities, but simply “as you go unto the sea of the plain, even the salt sea”. Deuteronomy 3:17. (In the days of the nations, there was no sea. It was a plain)
In Genesis 10:16, the Jebusites are mentioned, but not Jerusalem. This is like listing important settlements in early Briton and leaving out London. It was not until King David conquered the stronghold of the Jebusites, that Jerusalem was founded. In the days of the list of nations, the city did not exist.
In Genesis 10:26, the children of Joktan are listed, all thirteen of them, but on the side of the Jews, which is the main side of Bible genealogies, it stops at Peleg.
Why not stop with Abraham?
Or why list so many families members who are not mentioned again?
Simply because these people were part of the family living at the time of writing. A later writer would have left them out, but a patriarch of the day could not do so with impunity.
There are many similar anomalies that give evidence of great antiquity in the record of Genesis.
“Hebrew national tradition excels all others in its clear picture of tribal and family origins. In Egypt and Babylonia, in Assyria and Phoeniciea, in Greece and Rome, we look in vain for anything comparable. There is nothing like it in the tradition of the Germanic people. Neither India nor China can produce anything similar.” The Biblical Period. Professor Albright, introduction.
Look at the chart on the next page and you can see the age each patriarch became the father of his son and the year he died. Adding these together gives us the year of the flood – 1656 years from creation. (The BC year varies by 4 – 6 years – 4004BC, 4005BC, 4006BC -- depending on when Herod is believed to have died)
The list shows that Noah’s father died five years before the flood. His grand father Methuselah died at the beginning of the month of the flood, which was during the week prior to when Noah and his family entered the ark, on the 10th of the second month. (See Genesis 7:1-11) One meaning of Methuselah’s Hebrew name (M’tushalach) is when he is gone, then it shall happen, so it would have been a warning to the world that the flood was almost upon them.
How many heeded the warning?
Only eight people – Noah and his family.
Below is the genealogy of Adam. Note how many generations were able to hear his Eden experience firsthand. He died at nine hundred and thirty years, a century short of meeting Noah.
B'rasheet
You will notice that Peleg is mentioned again. The previous record describes the descendants of Peleg’s brother Joktan, but this one gives Peleg’s descendants. It was during his lifetime that the tower of Babel was destroyed and the languages confused, dispersing each group throughout the earth.
The next account is a combination of two records. Genesis 11:27b –25:19a, is the long account of Abraham’s life, all written by Isaac. But at the end there is a short list by Isaac’s brother Ishmael. His genealogy is Genesis 25:12 – 25:18. On this occasion, the colophon is at the beginning. Then Isaac closes the whole history with his own colophon.
In this record Adam gives details about the Garden of Eden, the fall of man and his punishment. He reports the deceptions of Satan, and his contradiction of man’s state in death, “Ye shall not surely die” he said, and millions have been deceived ever since. Genesis 3:4. Adam recorded words we still repeat today, “dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return.” Genesis 2:19. Man was not permitted to eat of the tree of life; he was sent from the garden. Thus man does not have an immortal soul. He dies and is laid in the ground - from whence he came. Until Christ returns we die. But when Jesus comes, He will give the gift of eternal life to those who are surrendered to Him as their Saviour. Adam tells of his two sons Cain and Abel, and gives details of Cain’s sin in killing his brother, and Cain’s departure from Eden. Adam shows the genealogy of his family, then he speak of his own child. And Adam knew his wife again; and she bare a son, and called his name Seth… And to Seth… was born a son. This is the book of the generations of Adam.
The Jews have preserved the sacred Scriptures for 3500 years. It is their history.
The most ancient Hebrew scroll extant (still existing) today was 1000 years old, but between 1947 and 1956, the Dead Sea scrolls were found in Qumran, revealing scrolls a thousand years older, 100BC. (Every book of the Bible was found, except Esther, including the Isaiah scroll shown above. There were also 25 Deuteronomy scrolls, 30 Psalm scrolls, plus commentaries, hymns, benedictions, laws, war conduct, wisdom writings etc)
God not only preserved a complete Isaiah scroll, but fifteen of them!
Scholars anxiously compared it with the Hebrew Masoretic text of today, and with joy discovered it was almost word for word. The only discrepancies are a few instances of spelling, and one three-letter word, making no difference to the meaning of the text.
So if you are reading a Masoretic Bible in Hebrew or a King James Bible in English, you can feel confident that it is the same as when it was first written.
There have been no changes.
“The word of the Lord endureth for ever.” 1 Peter 1:25.
If you accept the Bible as God’s Word, you will understand that: “All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: That the man of God may be perfect, throughly furnished unto all good works.” 2 Timothy 3:16.17.
Will you make a decision to believe God’s Word?
As you can see from this partial reading of Genesis 1:1 – 2:4, Adam included the seventh day in the creation account.
This day is different from all the other days of creation because “God blessed the seventh day, and sanctified it.” In other words, He set it apart as a holy day, a day where man could rest from his daily labour to contemplate the wonders of nature and the goodness of God.
Did you know, this is the only way we can calculate the seven-day week?
The earth, the sun, and the moon mark off our day, our month and our year, but not the week.
As the days go by, week after week, they continue to say to mankind, “In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.” (In the beginning -- ת י ש א ר ב -- b’rasheet in the Hebrew)
The second book of record was also written by Adam, and it covers Genesis 2:5 – 5:1a. (It could end with verse 2)
And unto them (Shem, Ham, and Japheth) were sons born after the flood. The sons of Japheth…. And the sons of Ham: Cush, Mizraim, Phut and Canaan… And Cush begat Nimrod… Many nations are mentioned and a number of cities, including Babel, built by Nimrod. These are the children of Shem…. Details are then given about the tower of Babel and how God confused the language. Shem’s genealogy mentions Peleg and Joktan, sons of Eber, and then it says that in Peleg’s days the earth was divided. This was the tower of Babel. So the Lord scattered them abroad from thence upon the face of all the earth: and they left off to build the city. Therefore is the name of it called Babel, because the Lord did there confound the language of all the earth: and from thence did the Lord scatter them abroad upon the face of all the earth. These are the generations of Shem.
At this point the colophon finalises Adam’s document.
If you compare the above with the previous record, you will see that Adam does not add his name to the first one. It is not his personal record, but one given to him by God.
The next account is Genesis 5:1b – 6:9a, written by Noah.
This begins with a record of Isaac’s marriage to Rebekah and their two children, Jacob and Esau. It tells of the struggles between these two brothers, Jacob’s deception of his brother and journey to Gerar. The account gives the life of Jacob and his marriage to Leah and Rachel, and how his father-in-law deceived him. It tells of Jacob’s meeting with Esau and how he spent the night in prayer, finally to gain the victory over his past sinful character. Many chapters speak of the birth of Jacob’s twelve sons. Esau’s genealogy is also detailed, taking a whole chapter. And Jacob dwelt in the land wherein his father was a stranger, in the land of Canaan. These are the generations of Jacob.
In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth… And God said, Let there be light: and there was light… And God said, Behold I have given you every herb bearing seed, which is upon the face of all the earth, and every tree, in the which is the fruit of a tree yielding seed; to you it shall be for meat. And to every beast of the earth, and to every fowl of the air, and to every thing that creepeth upon the earth, wherein there is life, I have given every green herb for meat: and it was so. And God saw every thing that he had made, and behold, it was very good. And the evening and the morning were the sixth day. Thus the heavens and the earth were finished, and all the host of them. And on the seventh day God ended his work which he had made; and he rested on the seventh day from all his work which he had made. And God blessed the seventh day, and sanctified it: because that in it he had rested from all his work which God created and made. These are the generations of the heavens and of the earth when they were created, in the day that the Lord God made the earth and the heavens.
The last one is in Genesis 25:19b – 37:2a, written by Jacob, Isaac’s son. It is quite a long one, but very important.
Noah was a just man and perfect in his generations, and Noah walked with God. And Noah begat three sons, Shem, Ham and Japheth. The earth also was corrupt before God, and the earth was filled with violence. God repeats to Noah that He will destroy the earth, but this time gives details of how he will do it. Make thee an ark of gopher wood; rooms shalt thou make in the ark, and shalt pitch it within and without with pitch. The length of the ark shall be three hundred cubits, the breadth of it fifty cubits, and the height of it thirty cubits. The next chapter begins with Noah and his family being told to enter the ark and God closes the door. The rest of the chapter and the next two (7,8,9) are the log book of the flood, giving a detailed records of the progress of the water and the boat, until it lands on the mountains of Ararat. And Noah lived after the flood three hundred and fifty years. And all the days of Noah were nine hundred and fifty years: and he died. Now these are the generations of the sons of Noah, Shem, Ham and Japheth.
Shem was an hundred years old, and begat Arphaxad two years after the flood… And Arphaxad lived five and thirty years, and begat Salah… And Salah begat Eber… And Eber begat Peleg… And Peleg lived thirty years and began Reu… And Reu begat Serug… And Serug begat Nahor… And Nahor begat Terah… And Terah lived seventy years, and begat Abrahm, Nahor, and Haran. Now these are the generations of Terah.
And Adam lived an hundred and thirty years, and begat a son in his own likeness, after his image; and called his name Seth. And the days of Adam… begat sons and daughters: And all the days of Adam lived were nine hundred and thirty years: and he died. And Seth lived…. Then are listed the genealogies until Noah. And Noah was five hundred years old: and Noah begat Shem, Ham, and Japheth. Noah gives an account of God coming to him about the sinful state of men, and that he will destroy the earth. These are the generations of Noah.
Each record ends with the person who wrote it and the next one begins with the mention of his name. This provides a connecting link.
The next record is Genesis 6:9b – 10:1a, written by Noah’s sons, possibly Shem, as he was the father of the Jewish race who kept the records.
Following on from this is a record kept by Shem, found in Genesis 10:1b – 11:10a.
Shem’s record gives an ancient table of nations. It says, “By these were the isles of the gentiles divided in their lands; every one after his tongue, after their families, in their nations… Seba, and Havilah, and Sabtah, and Raamah, and Sabtecha… Almodad…” Genesis 10:5.7.26.
We have not heard of these nations, but Professor W.F. Albright stated that this list of nations in Genesis 10 is “an astonishing accurate document”. Recent Discoveries in Bible Lands. New York. 1955 p4. Shem was writing of nations in his day and archaeologists have recognised them.
The next record is Genesis 11:10b – 11:27a, written by Terah, Abraham’s father.
On the next page are Noah’s descendants through his son Shem, to Abraham the father of the Jewish race, and on to Moses, the visible leader of Israel from bondage in Egypt. Note the shortening of the lifespan. This was after 1650 years of sin, and possibly brought about through the eating of meat (permitted after the flood), as well as the increase in disease among the people and the animals.
AGE OF NOAH’S DESCENDANTS AT DEATH
AFTER THE FLOOD
Noah -- 950 years
Shem – 600 years
Arphaxad – 438 years
Salah – 433 years
Eber – 464 years
Peleg – 239 years
Reu – 239 years
Serug – 230 years
Nahor – 205 years
Abraham – 175 years
Isaac – 180 years
Jacob – 147 years
Moses – 120 years
Moses was born approximately 2368 years from creation. His writing of the ancient records (the book-scroll of Genesis) would have been done during his forty years in the desert of Midian as a shepherd. God had planned that he would meet Jethro, the priest of Midian and marry his daughter.
As Jethro was a priest of the true God, he would have had a copy of the ancient records, perhaps the original copies, as he was never in captivity. The remainder of the ‘books of Moses’ would have been written after Israel had been freed from Egyptian captivity, as they detail the exodus, the sanctuary, and the wilderness wanderings.
The sacred scrolls were then taken to the promised land. (It is interesting that Joseph requested his bones be taken to the promised land, and this was fulfilled faithfully. Genesis 50:25.26)
When Moses finished writing the precious scrolls, he placed them in the side of the sacred ark, in the most holy place of the sanctuary.
Sadly the Jews often went into idolatry and the scrolls were forgotten. However, when they repented, these sacred records were discovered and read with joy. At times the people wept and trembled because God had described their condition perfectly, and spoke of the coming judgment.
The ark of the covenant was secretly hidden in a cave by Jeremiah the prophet, and eight priests who carried it. This cave has been found, but the ark has not been removed. It will remain secret until God gives permission for the Ten Commandments to be brought out for the world to see.
We do not know what happened to the original records, but the scrolls written by Moses remained in the side of the ark.
Nebuchadnezzar destroyed Jerusalem by fire in 586BC, and everything left in the city was burnt or taken to Babylon. Copies of the scrolls remained with the Jewish people, even in captivity.
Genealogy records were absolutely essential to the Jewish people, for without them Israel could not identify the Messiah from the tribe of Judah. It was also imperative for the Levites to have their genealogy records to prove their ancestry, or they could not be accepted for the priesthood.
After Israel had resettled in Jerusalem, Ezra the scribe gathered the chiefs of the fathers of all the people, the priests, and the Levites “to understand the words of the law” those “written in the law which the Lord had commanded by Moses…” Nehemiah 8:13.14.
The ‘words of the law’ explained by Ezra are the first five books of the Bible – Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, Deuteronomy – all written by Moses. These books, called the Torah in Hebrew, are the ‘books of the law’, very precious documents to Jews, Messianic Jews, and Christians alike. (Below is the priceless 2000-year-old Isaiah scroll found at Qumran, displayed in the Shrine of the Book museum in Jerusalem)
ת י ש א ר , ב
“In the beginning….”
These words constitute the oldest record of earth’s history; the first words of the Christian Bible. They can be debated, and they can be disputed. They can be disbelieved, but they cannot be proven wrong.
In the beginning – what?
“In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth.” Genesis 1:1.
Do you believe these words?
Your answer will make a difference to your belief in the rest of the Bible, for everything else depends on their accuracy.
Of course, no one was there to see the creation of this world, but it is recorded in the Bible that we might understand our beginnings.
“And God said, let there be light: and there was light. And God saw the light, that it was good; and God divided the light from the darkness. And God called the light Day, and the darkness he called Night. And the evening and the morning were the first day.” Genesis 1:3.4.5.
On the first day, the earth was just a ball of water, but from this, God created a habitable earth. On the second day He created the “firmament”, or atmosphere. On the third day God brought the land up from the waters, and caused grass, vegetables and fruit trees to grow upon it. Then He brought forth the “greater light” and the “lesser light”, the sun to rule the day, and the moon to rule the night. Genesis 1:14.16.
Just stop a moment.
By day four, after just ninety six hours, the earth is prepared for its inhabitants.
There is air to breathe, water to drink, grass, vegetables and fruit to eat, the sun for warmth during the day and the moon to give light at night. (Of course there are many other benefits from all these, but this is basic)
Perhaps you think all this impossible. How could a beautiful world be created in four days? Evolution has conditioned the mind to think in millions of years.
The Bible shows an instant creation by the voice of an omnipotent God, “For he spake, and it was done; he commanded, and it stood fast.” Psalm 33:9.
God speaks and matter comes into being.
The Psalmist wrote, “By the word of the Lord were the heavens made; and all the host of them by the breath of his mouth…” Psalm 33:6.
When the first atomic bomb was released, many scientists suggested that if such power can come from one atom, the reverse is also possible – atoms can come from power.
And yes, this is so. But only God has enough power.
How were the worlds made – Was it by evolution or by creation?
God said, “Through faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the word of God, so that things which are seen were not made of things which do appear.” Hebrews 11:3.
We are to believe by faith that God created the world.
On the fifth day God filled the waters with fish, and the sky with birds.
Suddenly, with a splash of colour, the song of the birds filled the air. Bees began gathering nectar, and butterflies flitted about the perfuming flowers.
“And God blessed them, saying, Be fruitful, and multiply....” Genesis 1:22.
On the sixth day “God said, Let the earth bring forth the living creature after his kind, cattle, and creeping thing, and beast of the earth after his kind: and it was so.” Genesis 1:24.
The dry land is now filled with animals, creatures in all their loveliness – lion, elephant, giraffe, horse, dog – each one with its mate.
“And God saw that it was good.” Genesis 1:25.
Now the beautiful home is ready for its princely caretaker.
Did God just speak and Adam came forth?
No.
Man is a special creation.
“And the Lord God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul.” Genesis 2:7.
Can you imagine a loving God forming a man from the damp soil with great care? See how carefully He moulds the moistened dust. Watch as He leans over and gives Adam the kiss of life.
When Adam rises from the ground, his body is covered with a soft glow, forming a garment of light. It is God’s Spirit shining from within. So long as Adam remains obedient, he will wear the robe of light. If he sins, it will be withdrawn.
Some time later, God performed the first operation and Eve was created from one of Adam’s ribs. It does not mean men have one less rib, because if a rib is taken from the correct place, it will grow back in a short while.
“And God saw every thing that he had made, and behold, it was very good. And the evening and the morning were the sixth day.” Genesis 1:31.
This is the true record of our creation.
Within the first two chapters of Genesis are the answers to life’s most important questions, and they were written down by the very first human being.
Reader, if you choose to believe God’s words, you will know the answers to life’s basic questions:
- Who am I?
- Where did I come from?
- Why am I here?
- Where am I going?
You see, God formed the earth with you in mind. He told Adam and Eve to be fruitful and multiply. They are your ancestors.
Or course, you are free to believe you came from a monkey or an ape-like creature. That is your choice. But with this understanding, there is no special creation. There is no Father-God, no Creator and no perfect world.
Instead, for millions of years, the only rule of life was the survival of the fittest. Man evolved from lower forms of life by tooth and claw, blood and death.
And it all happened by chance.
On the other hand, if you accept God’s words, you can see a perfect world with no sin, no pain, no suffering and no death. And God said it was “very good”.
The birds, the fish, the animals, and the plants, were to multiply “after their kind” – cats had cats, elephants had elephants, fish had fish, eagles had eagles. One does not need to understand genetics to know that dogs still have dogs, and no matter how much interbreeding is done, butterflies remain butterflies.
Look at the different kinds of animals and plants today and understand that in spite of many experiments, there is no viable interbreeding between them.
It is true man is doctoring the genes today, but if left in the wild, transmutations between kinds do not occur. Even controlled breeding between different kinds of animals, insects and plants, does not produce a species that can bring forth its own mutated kind.
When asked for an example of a creature in the process of evolving, Richard Dawkins, the most well-known spokesman for evolution, was unable to give one. (DVD ‘Frogs into Princes’, available from Creation Ministries International – www.creationontheweb.com)
Man has worked with plants and animals for centuries, making superior crops and stronger cattle. But breeding is not evolution. Natural selection is not evolution.
God created two human beings, male and female. He did not create two males or two females as this would not fulfil His purpose to multiply and fill the earth.
In the beginning a woman must have come from a man, and not the other way around, in spite of the fact that all humanity descended from a woman. This is not a contradiction. Both male and female have X chromosomes, but the male alone has a Y chromosome. (This is the true identification of a male, and has been used in Olympic Games disputes)
After concluding his account of the creation of the world, Adam wrote the words, “These are the generations of the heavens and of the earth when they were created, in the day that the Lord God made the earth and the heavens.” Genesis 2:4.
The word for ‘generations’ in Hebrew is toledoth, which can also be translated ‘birth’. It is used for the genealogy of families, and means ‘the historical origin’.
When we write books and articles today, we put the name and author at the beginning. Often there is an introduction, which is called a colophon. But in ancient writing the colophon is often written at the conclusion.
The Code of Hammurabi is a classic example. At the end of his inscription this Eastern king wrote, “The righteous laws which Hammurabi the wise king established… my weighty words have been written upon my monument.”
We do not know on what material Adam wrote; it may have been an animal skin, or even a clay tablet. Thousands of clay tablets have been found in the city of Ebla, showing that writing was well known long before papyrus became popular. Below is Adam’s very first record of the creation of this earth.